Max Ryan is no stranger to Agenda Magazine.  Almost two years ago, I interviewed him about his role in Death Race in our Fall 2008 issue.  He’s known for playing harder characters, but  in Sex and the City 2, Max does a complete about face—showing a softer, sexier side.  My interest in interviewing Max a second time has a lot to do with my recent trip to the movie theater.  I knew he was in Sex and the City 2, but had no idea the extent of his role.  I was pleasantly surprised to see all of him on screen, (tee hee hee).  This prompted an email that night.  I needed to hear all about his experience on one of the hottest films this summer.

Interviewed by Kaylene Peoples (boldface)
Responses by Max Ryan

Hello Max, it’s so good to see you again.

It’s great to see you too, by the way.  When was the last time we interviewed?

It’s been over a year and a half, or maybe two.

It was after Death Race actually.  It was a good one.

Yes, that was a great movie.  I didn’t see it before I interviewed you, and then I saw it and who knew.  You’re so diverse.  You have such a range . . . it’s amazing.

Well, that’s more me, I think.  When I got asked to put together some scene work for Sex and the City 2, I was looking for a romantic comedy.  It sat on my desk, and I remember thinking, “What am I going to do with this now?”  Eventually I got to it.  That was my first romantic comedy.  It’s kind of strange when you play pretty hard characters, which I’ve been playing.  What I’m trying to say, it was great because it was me just becoming me just having fun.  It was brilliant just to be able to portray myself.  Obviously with a character I don’t walk around naked, of course.  But it was fantastic.

But you might [walk around naked] at home when no one’s looking, right?

Yeah, absolutely!

So it is just you portraying YOU!

That’s really good actually.

So, I saw the movie, like every female in the country did.  And of course the amazing clothes and the spectacular cinematography and the settings were awesome; but your role in the movie . . . it wasn’t a huge role, but it was really prominent.

Yeah, well you know in the movie, it’s about the relationship.  Sammy (Kim Cattrall) is an iconic person.  A few other guys got time with her, and it was great for those guys.  Obviously, Louis was back in it as well.  But that whole entrance with the jeep and the bravado . . . it was fantastic for me because my background is action.  So when I’m in Morocco [coupled with my own background of action], there’s kind of like this flamboyant character.

I watch a lot of old movies, and your entrance reminded me of a starring character.  Especially the movies back in the 40s and 50s, a lot of times they’ll have this long, maybe 30-40 minute opening of a movie where the main character actually comes in, and your entrance was so like that.  It was like everything was waiting for you to appear.

It was really surreal.

Like Lawrence of Arabia . . . it reminded me a lot of that.

Well, that’s what Michael was going on about on set.  Samantha was saying ”Lawrence of my labia,” which is hilarious! (Max is cracking up).  We really did have so much fun on that.  It was absolutely fantastic.  You know we were way out in the desert in the sticks about ten hours from Marrakech.

What was it like shooting there?

I shot in Morocco, which is north of Africa, but it was really really cool.  The streets were filled with trinkets and memorabilia you can buy, and everybody’s bartering for different things.  It was just next door to my hotel.

What we see in the movie, the final cut . . . was that reality of how it looks, or was it dressed up a little bit?

Yeah, it’s crazy, very narrow and it’s just floor to ceiling drapes, shoes, dresses, trinkets and memorabilia . . . the streets are packed.  A lot of people go there.  It’s a huge tourist place.  But that’s when we were shooting in Marrakech.   We were all out 10 hours from anywhere.  It’s the desert.  People live out there with camels and tents.  It’s absolutely mind-blowing.  And when I got there to the hotel in the desert, they’re like these spas and like miniature castles if you will—very unusual place.  And the following morning (5:30 a.m.) was my call time.  We were driving for about 25 minutes, and all of a sudden I see this huge mirage—all the Hollywood setup.  For four ladies it was a very big set.  It was huge.

So it wasn’t really a mirage?

Getting out of there was something else.  We had a 747 in the middle of the desert.  We drove about 2 ½ hours.  It was too far to drive back for everybody.  There were hundreds of people.  The studio had hired this 747 to fly us back.  It was an hour and a half flight.  The plane was so tall.   It was above everything.  There were buildings in the middle of nowhere.  I didn’t even know it landed.  It was a long runway for a 747.

Tell me about some of the memorable moments of actually shooting on the film.  Do you have anything in particular that you liked best about it?

From the outset, this experience was something else because I put myself on tape here in LA, and then I emailed the mpeg files.  I sent them over to Eric, my manager, and Blake; and they forwarded them on to New York.   I took a week’s holiday out, and I got a call [while I was still on holiday] to see me in New York for the following week.  This is the thing about Sex and the City 2.  The energy you feel while watching the movie, is the director Michael Patrick King living, sleeping, and eating this—Sex and the City.  He has a lot of energy, which carries over into the movie.  The producer John Melfi was amazing. Visconte, Eric Cyphers, and of course Sara Jessica Parker, she’s a producer on it as well.  When I met her, she was looking at me, and I thought, “Am I going to be fired now?”  It’s like a big family.  You’ve got to fit in and do your thing.

And then I got to New York, which was my first shoot date, and that’s when I met the four girls together.  They really are iconic girls.  I don’t get star struck with anybody.  What I found about the girls is that they’ve kept it together for so long for years.  They’ve worked together through the highs and lows and still to this day they’re still there standing strong, and I think that’s fantastic.  And that shows a lot about a project and any relationship.  Whether you’re working in McDonald’s, it doesn’t matter.  To have that bond is something unique.  And they really do have a lot of fun.  We really were laughing a lot.

The karaoke scene in the club where I come over to the girls and introduce myself to  Samantha, all these eyes just turn and looked at me for the first time, all four of them in costume, made up, these big eyes.  I was like “whoa.”  It was really pretty special.

You were pretty exposed in this film. (Referring to the nude scene with Samantha)

Yeah, I was . . . .

What was it like?

I want to speak for Samantha as well.  I call Kim [Cattrall] Samantha.  That scene was done at 4:00 in the morning and it was windy and it was pretty cold.  It was all set up, the jeep and hundreds of people around.  Obviously we had to cover it up as much as possible.  I was obviously naked and Sam was obviously barely dressed.  But I was originally in a shirt and pants and boots.  What I think happened was between the costumes, producers, and the director, and the fact that it was pretty cold, they dressed me.

So how did you end up without any clothes on?  And don’t tell me Photoshop!

I looked at Michael and I said, “Are you happy with the costume?”  He looked at me.  Now he’s so good at what he does, and I knew that he was going to protect me to some degree.  It’s not about showing my privates, even though it was pretty close.  I have to be honest with you.  We both just had it in our minds that we had to go IMPACT.  This is the first time I’ve actually spoken about it.  It’s a great question, by the way.

You know I’m glad you’re telling me this because sometimes I’ll hear about or see the part and I wonder if the actor or actress was conflicted about baring all.  Really, that’s a big deal.

It is a big deal.  I didn’t realize how many millions of people would see this.  With Sam, there’s a lot of mutual understanding, and she’s very good at what she does.  So I felt secure, and in between Michael and Sam and the way we were shooting it, it turned out exactly or near to what I thought it was going to look like.  When I saw it—I have to be honest with you—I didn’t think what we shot was in, and then all of a sudden, literally, that very second . . . BOOM, voice over from Sara.

I would like to have seen more of you in the movie.  I wish you would have had more screen time because you were such a prominent character, it seemed like you should have been a lead.  I think you will be in the next one.

Are they going to make a next one?

I’m sure of it!

That would be interesting.  The movie’s done very well (250 million).  It’s a success.  Not necessarily based on money, but just based on the fact that people liked the movie.  When you think about where we were and the religion side and all the rest of it, it was definitely well handled.

I thought it was tastefully done in a lot of ways.

I have to be honest with you, I was in Tel Aviv, and this lady who was visiting from England looked right at me, and I honestly didn’t know what to do.  She said, “You’re in Sex and the City2!”  She loved the movie.  We took pictures together in Jerusalem.

Did you not think you’d be recognized?

I’ve done studio movies before, and I’ve played great roles, but I never really publicized anything.  My publicist and Warner really built the momentum of my character.  It was just getting so much press.  Nothing can prepare you for what’s happened to me now.  I’m a humble guy.  Literally, I’m on planes, and I’m having my picture taken.

What’s next for you?

I have a movie with Clive Owen.

No titles yet?

The ink’s still wet on this.  It’s so fresh.  And there are a couple more things happening as well, very exciting.

Watch the Interview.